Counting
by Erianne
Summary: A jealous General, a rival kingdom, and a romance fighting to even exist. Set 7 years after OOT in the child timeline. Zelink. M for possible smut in much later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

**Summary: Set seven years after Ocarina of Time in the child timeline. A jealous general, a rival country, and a romance fighting to even exist at all. Zelink. Ignores the events of Majoras Mask. Summary sucks, I know.**

**Okay, so this is my first fic, so please be gentle! This is set after Link gets sent back in time in Ocarina of Time and ignored MM. Please try not to flame if I have any of the little details wrong, but let me know so I can change them. I apologize for any mistakes, there shouldn't be any, but who knows? **

**Disclaimer, I do not own The Legend of Zelda, if I did Link and Zelda would have gotten together at the end of every game, I would also have a bunch of money. All original characters, countries, and events are mine, but if you actually like them you can PM me if you want to use them **

**Enjoy!**

Lightning illuminated Zelda's posh bedchamber. She huddled under her duvets and coverlets as she waited. Zelda's mother taught her at a young age that after you see lightning during a thunderstorm, you should start counting until you hear the thunder. If you are able to count higher each time, the storm is moving away from where you are, and if the number decreases, well, you better be ready for an onslaught.

Zelda hates thunderstorms, and she always has. The walls of her room are half glass windows, and the way they rattle and vibrate during storms never helped. Although frightened, Zelda could not help but let out a small giggle. A seventeen years old women, a princess, cowering from a storm? But everyone, even princesses of Hyrule are allowed to be afraid of something, right?

She would feel a lot better if she wasn't alone, and she knows exactly who she would want to be with tonight.

Link and Zelda grew up together, well technically. He, after all, was the Hero of Time. After Zelda sent him back seven years, the first thing that he did was come to the castle looking for her. Somehow Zelda had convinced her father to let him stay in the castle, even though to the King and everyone else, he was a complete stranger. Not that anything that the King said would have kept them apart. They are bound by something way stronger than mere friendship. The forces of the Triforce held strong between the two through time and space. Zelda still held wisdom, and Link courage.

Power lay hidden and forbidden deep within the Evil Realm, with the evil man who took it. It is ready to be claimed in a later generation. This time by someone worthy of the name.

Zelda never quite understood why Link stay with her in the palace all these years, not that she wasn't grateful that he remained here with her, but she kind of thought that he would want to spend his lost years with his friends in the Kokiri Forest or travelling the lands, not shut up with her and the court in the castle. But he never seemed unhappy with his life, at least not towards Zelda. Link occupied most of his time in the palace training grounds with the army since he was about twelve and was aloud in. All of that training paid off, it also helped that he was naturally skilled with a blade.

By the age of seventeen he was the youngest man ever to not only be knighted, but the be named a Colonel of the Hylian Army. If the rumors around court were true, Link was soon to be named the General, the highest ranking point in the government of Hyrule besides the King himself.

General was defiantly a title he deserved, obviously he was not able to go around flaunting the fact that he was the Hero of Time, because no one in this world exactly knew who that was, or what that title entailed. But he made a name for himself in this reality. He's known as quite the hero from the wars he has fought in since the time that he was fifteen and allowed to be in the army as a foot solider. Now, fifteen does seem young for a solider, for the most part the age restriction was sixteen, but if the boy is able to pass a series of rigorous tests, he would be admitted as a solider of the lowest rank. Of course Link passed them all with flying colors. None of the wars that Hyrule has fought in the past two years could really be considered wars under the shadow of the Imprisoning wars with Ganondorf. They were more small skirmishes with the neighboring countries of Alicard, Sabenen, and Hisimum, all of which Hyrule now has peaceful relation, Alicard was a bit on edge, but things were stable, and Link was a hero none the less.

Another boom of thunder shook Zelda out of her train of thoughts. She counted to twenty this time, which was two seconds less than it was the last time, _Damn it_. Zelda had to fight with everything she had not to run out her door, down the stairs, and across the castle to the East Wing, where the military stayed. The regular soldiers on the bottom floors in large barracks, and the officers in their own chambers. As you climb the stairs, you climb the ranks. Link was one floor below General Rasche. But Zelda had to restrain herself.

It wasn't like that between Link and her. They were just friends, best friends actually, which was something that none of the courtiers seemed to believe. Oh, how they loved to talk. Not one day could go by without someone, Lord, Lady or even maid, making some comment about the princess and the young Colonel. Zelda always denied the fact that there was anything going on between the two, because there really wasn't. That only made them more persistent about it. The truth is, Zelda and Link were just friends, and that is all they will ever be.

It's not the fact that she didn't want to. Along with the reality that Link was technically just a commoner and Zelda a princess, who was not allowed to officially court anyone but nobles, Link did not return her affections.

He would kiss her hand and loop his arm around her elbow on occasion, and every time Zelda's heart would soar, but she knew that it was all just a formality, a ceremony of sorts. When they were children they would embrace and he would casually sling his arm over her shoulders. She would in turn kiss him on the cheek often and snuggle into that perfect little crook in his shoulder. On a daily basis they could be seen walking around the palace gardens hand in hand. But when he was named Colonel last year, that all changed.

When they would be around each other after that, it was all "m'ladies" and "your highnesses" on his part. Link would barely make eye contact while talking, let alone touch her. Every so often he would break out of his shell, and they would talk all night, about anything and everything. Then in the morning, it would all go back to the façade. This kind of behavior practically killed Zelda every time she had to endure it. She longed for it to be back to the way it was, but that will never happen, those people that they once were did not exist anymore.

Link was a strong and valiant warrior now. He no longer had messy hair and a lumpy and crinkled tunic. Link was poised always looking smooth and collected. Hair greased down, and forest green tunic and hat ironed and vibrant. His brown boots no longer were creased and covered in dirt, they were clean and shined. To Zelda it was as if he was a completely different person on the outside, and in some ways she believe that he had changed on the inside as well. His boyish charms grew into dashing good looks. You could see his rippling muscles through his undershirts, and his perfectly sculpted and tan face could entice almost any young women in all of Hyrule and beyond.

But, Zelda was guilty of change as well. In the past years she had exchanged her thin sun dresses, bare feet, and wavy hair freely flowing down her back for elegant gowns with sweetheart necklines. Her feet were now donned with high heels that pinched her toes and were embedded with jewels, and her hair was always twisted into some new design by her hair dresser each morning.

Zelda was truly beautiful in every way possible. She was ghostly pale, the effects of being confined to the castle almost her entire life, but her pigmentation was perfect for her. She has dark blonde hair, that when worn freely cascaded down her entire back and curled at the ends. Zelda's green eyes were always full of life and her smile could instantly brighten up any room. Although she was only seventeen, her father has already been sent dozens of letters and requests from princes and nobles all over the world for her hand in marriage when she comes of age next year. Honestly, Zelda has never looked at one of the requests twice, she always tells her father that she is simply uninterested. She would never tell him the truth, it would only add fire to the rumor mill.

She finally got down to only eight seconds between lightning and the thunder, and she was officially to scared to sleep or stay in her room for the rest of the night. Zelda slipped out of her cover and wrapped her fluffy robe, that was stuffed with Cucco feathers to keep her warm in the Hylian winter. It was only November and the castle hallways were freezing, as they all lacked fire places. She padded out of her room and down the stairwell to the main part of the castle, but the East Wing was not her destination. She received many an odd look and question from the night guards about her whereabouts, but Zelda assured that she was only going to library, as she could not sleep.

But, the library was not her destination. On nights like these Zelda always retreated to the Grand Hall, which was completely empty, no guards patrolled here at night. Her foot steps caused echoes through the vast corridor as she walked across the marbles floors to the center of the room, her candle lighting her way. As she reached the center design, she plopped down on the lower left hand golden triangle of the Triforce, the emblem representing the Triforce of Wisdom.

The main reason that she choose this room was that there was absolutely no windows on the walls. Zelda could only faintly hear the storm thundering outside. Finally, a wave of exhaustion hit her and she yawned and slowly laid down on her side. As she slowly slipped into unconsciousness she smiled.

Zelda defiantly did not choose this room because all soldiers had to pass through this hall on their way to the training grounds every morning. She also didn't pick it because a certain solider was always up an hour before anyone else to do extra training, and he would be the one to find her and wake her up.

No, that's not why she was there at all.

**Thanks for reading! I know that the first chapter was slow and barely got into the story, but I promise that it will soon be fraught with adventure and romance this was more of a general background. Expect updates!**

**Review and you will be awarded a gold star!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hey guys! I know that the chapters are short… ish. But that means I can update more and quicker! I'm going to try to make the next one longer. Thank you so much for reading and reviewing! I was expecting like one person to review and be like… "You suck." So thanks! Enjoy!**

Link naturally awoke just before dawn, fully rested. For some reason, he always slept better the nights of large storms, the pitter patter of rain and the roar of thunder lulled him to sleep as soon as his head hit the pillow the night before.

No wake up knock by a maid or guard was needed for Link to be the first one up. He was accustomed to getting up earlier on his own. He sat up in bed and stretched out his arms, joints cracking from being stiff all night. His thin sheet pooled around his waist, revealing his toned chest.

Wasting no time getting up and ready, Link swung his legs over the side of his bed and stood. Walking over to his dresser, he tripped over his shield that he had carelessly dropped on the floor the night before. Link landed on the floor with a thud, and cursed himself for not putting it away last night. Although not standard issue for a man of his rank, Link still carried his blue and silver Hylian shield he used not only as a child, but as an adult, but those were different times, a different reality.

He dressed quickly, putting on his crisp green tunic and hat. Smoothing his hair back with one hand, Link looked around for his other boot, he could see one at the foot of his bed, but not the other. After pulling the first one on, he crouched down by his bed, and swept his hand underneath.

_Got it! _

Link pulled the last one on and stood up, and examined his mess of a room. He had to be so collected and orderly around patrons of the castle and his men, but Link's chambers are the only place that he could be a mess, and he liked it that way. Maids offered every day to clean it up for him, but Link always refused.

After locating his scabbard that contained his sword, he swung it over his shoulder and tied it in place. This one was no master sword, that still lay hidden in the Temple of Time, but it was the best he could get. Biggoron a top Death Mountain crafted it for him, and this time the sword was to scale for Link. Oh, how the other officers envied his handcrafted sword, they all had to carry the identical standard issue ones, but not Link, he was what you call special.

Swinging his shield on his back Link walked out of his room and down the hall. He loved his position and the quality of his quarters, but what he didn't love was all the stairs he had to climb up and down every day. He trudged down the stone flight, his steps barely making a sound. After a few years of practice Link had learned how to descend the tower without even coming close to waking anyone up.

Link never really understood why he felt that he should be the first one up. It wasn't like he actually needed the extra training or anything. He guesses that it is because if his men see him pushing himself harder and training more and longer, they would follow suit. When Link joined the army it was, well shambles is such a crud term, but that's basically what it was like. General Rasche's leadership was strong, but not nearly strong enough.

Hyrule had not been majorly threatened before Link joined the army. It was a rich and powerful nation no country would even think about attacking, as none of them really comprehended that state of the Hylian army. Link was the first man to pass the Underage Admittance test in nearly fifty years; he believed that's why the men started training harder and longer.

It's not that they were afraid of him, per say. It's the fact that they didn't want a fifteen years old kid to show them up, which he could easily do without much effort at all. This is what scared them. Link was skilled with a blade, a bow, hook shot, boomerang, and even a slingshot. All of which he could best even an expert who had been training their entire life.

By now Link had reached the bottom of the stairs and began to head towards the main part of the castle. It was hard for him to get use to the grandeur of the palace, it was so much more ostentatious and elegant that his shabby little tree house in Kokiri Forest where he lived for the first half of his life.

He walked down a couple more narrow hallways before he came to the entrance to the Grand Hall. At times like these it was empty of anything, the lack of furniture made the place seem even more ominous. It is a pretty odd route to the training grounds, which is where he was headed. It wasn't the "official" route, but it was the most direct, and everyone used it.

As he entered he saw a white figure curled up on the Triforce of Wisdom. Link walked closed and could see a myriad of dark blonde hair fanned out flat against the floor.

_Not Again. _

General Rasche paced his office and chambers, fury dripping from his every breath and movement; along with every word he spoke the Colonel MacNab, who was sitting in an arm chair across the room.

"How dare they." He spitted his words across the room with more venom injected in his voice then the deadliest Hyrulian rattle snake. "Do they really think that they can replace me with some filthy, low life brat of a child?" Yelling the last word with overwhelming hate, he threw his rock glass containing his morning brandy, which he liked a little too much now a days, at the portrait of the royal family that was required to be hung in every military office. "I've been in this army for thirty years, that's longer than that bastard has even been alive. I'm only forty six Din damn it, I'm too young to be replaced!"

"All due respect Sir," Colonel MacNab replied, slightly shaken by Rasche's outburst, but it went unnoticed to the General. "It's all just rumors. You know how the courtiers just love to talk. Do you really think that the King would really replace you with Link?" He spat out Links name like it was a dirty word.

"Yes, I do." Rasche kept his eyes locked on the gray brick that surrounded the two.

MacNab countered that. "Just because he and Zelda are close doesn't mean that…"

"Don't you even bring up that little bitch." Rasche interrupted, rage overflowing in his voice. "Zelda has King Harkanian wrapped around her finger. Anything that she says, he'll do, especially regarding Link." Rasche's voice boomed. He wasn't a very large man, but his presence alone scared his soldier's silly. He was about five foot eight and had a large build, but wasn't huge. His black hair was shaved down to stubble, and his grey eyes had a sense of coldness about them that could pierce the bravest of minds. Rasche always wore a dark blue tunic, with medals of valor pinned to his left breast, signifying how many wars he had been in, and when he was honored. With thirty years of service under his belt, he could never wear them all at once.

Colonel MacNab, on the other hand, was actually quite lanky; he's not what you call a "physical" being. His mind is as sharp as a tack though. His battle techniques are famous for their intricacy and efficiency. MacNab's body was donned in a light gray uniform, very similar to Rasche's but was adorned with fewer medals. He had been in the military for about ten years, and at the bright age of twenty-six, he was the youngest man ever to be named Colonel that is before Link came along. "So what do you suppose we do about it?"

"You know his routine check Link is going on to Alicard next week?" Rasche turned his body towards the window and watched as the blazing sun begins to rise. A light orange shadow began to cast it's self at the edge of Castle Town as a few early morning merchants began to stumble out of their houses and make their way to the town's square.

"Yes?" MacNab questioned, yet he could still see where Rasche was going with this.

"Well," He turned around, a smirk came across his face and his grey eyes pierced MacNab's light green ones.

"What if he never comes back?"

**A/N: So… what did you think? Review please! New chapter will be up soon, it will probably be up next Friday, I like the whole once a week thing. Thanks for reading!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Sorry, this update took forever. Enjoy, it's short but packed full of Zelink drama! I apologize for the grammar/tense mistakes. Thanks you to everyone who reviewed. I tend to switch my tenses a lot, but I am working on it. It is one part of the English language that is really hard for me to grasp, even if it is my native tongue. **

Link grasped Zelda's shoulder and gently shook her awake. She was still curled up on the marble floor, her robe snuggled up against her. Her face looked peaceful as she slept, something that Link couldn't help but gaze at.

_No. _He tousled himself out of that stupor. _She's the princess, you're a soldier. And that is that. _

"Zelda." Link crouched down next to her and shook her shoulder a little more. "Zelda wake up" Her first name rolled off his tongue so easily, even though he has not called her that to her face in at least a year, even when they have their secret midnight talks, he can never bring himself to address her so informally, it goes against all of his etiquette training. But he dares to be dangerous when she can not hear him.

Her eyes started to blink open, her long lashes fluttered against her cheeks in a way that made Link's heart melt like a stick of Lon Lon butter, but he needed to snap out of it, and quick. Link was supposed to be in Colonel mode now, but he could spare a few minutes, _right_?

As Zelda opened her eyes, the first thing that she saw was Link's smiling face a mere foot from her. "Good morning Sir Link." She sat up and rubbed her neck. It was sore from sleeping on the floor all night, but it had been well worth it to see Link, her Link. Not the robot military commander Link, she didn't really like that guy. "I trust that you slept well. I know how much you love a good storm." Zelda sat up fully; she was now eye to eye with the hero.

"And I know how much you hate them, and good morning to you, you're Highness." Link stood up and offered her his hand, the smile remaining on his face.

"You know me to well." Zelda winced as she stood. Half because of the fact she slept on the floor all night, half because of what he just called her. She hated how he addressed her. They had grown up together, they had shared a tutor, they were practically family, and he still felt the need to address her as "you're Highness." It made Zelda physically sick sometimes.

"I still can not believe that you still will not sleep in a room with windows during a storm." Link respectfully took a step back as he spoke.

"I guess that is something I simply will not grow out of Link." Zelda's expression morphed into a devious smile, yet she still maintained a certain level of sweetness in her voice. No matter what she said, Zelda could always make it sound like a compliment. "Are you still afraid of redead?"

"That's not fair m'lady." His laugh carried a sense of sincerity. "Those are life sucking, dead eyed monsters, not precipitation."

"Well," Zelda laughed right along with him. "I guess you're right." She took a step towards him, and he immediately took yet another step back. "But it is precipitation accompanied by abrupt loud noises." Zelda forced a laugh, but she began to grow annoyed with Link. Again she paced forward, but this time he jumped back.

"Okay, that's it!" She yelled across the narrow space that separated them. "I am so far beyond sick of this. What in the Evil Realm is wrong with you Link?"

"What ever do you mean you're Highness?" Link seemed perplexed at the situation yet he knew exactly to what she was referring, Zelda never yelled, at least not like this. She always speaks so proper, Zelda was taught at a young age that a lady must never raise her voice, and to refrain from using such common language.

"Stop, okay. Just stop." Her hands came to her face and slowly she moved them down, pushing her temples together as she went, meeting at the tip of her nose. "Stop with the m'ladies and the pretending that you and I were never friends. I can't do it anymore; I can't pretend that we don't mean anything to each other." She enunciated every word.

Link looked as if one of the cadets had just stabbed him with a training sword their first time out. "You're Highness, I beg your pardon but"

"I said stop it Link." Zelda locked eyes with him; he could see the faint rimming of tears in her eyes.

"Okay," Link took a step towards her, his hands positioned in front of him. "Okay."

"What happened to us Link?" Zelda sniffled. "We used to be best friends. We used to do everything together. You have no idea how much I miss you." A single tear trickled down her cheek, her make-up from they day before became even more smudged.

"Hey." Link gently placed his hands on her shoulders with his thumbs moving in slow, circular motions, and stared deeply into her eyes, his blue mixing with her green as he spoke. "It's okay."

"No." Zelda shook her head, and with that more tears came pouring out. "No it's not

"Yes." Link ever so gently grasped Zelda's chin, forcing her to look into his eyes. "It is. It's okay"

"I can tell that you don't care about me anymore. I don't mean anything to you." She lowered her head as she spoke.

The tears he saw in her eyes hurt him down to the very core. "I'm sorry Zelda. I miss you. I do care, trust me."

Just the sound of her name coming from his lips made her heart soar. Zelda could not remember the last time she heard him call her by her first name. Now she only had one question. "Why? Why have we become so distant from each other? Every once in a while we talk, but it is not nearly enough."

Link took a deep breath and a step back, releasing her arms from his grasp. "Honestly, I'm not entirely sure." His eyes never left hers, he could not lie to her anymore. "I mean, I am. I do know why." He reached his hand up and covered his eyes. "And I hate myself for it."

"What do you hate your self for?" The tears never stopped flowing down Zelda's face. She hoped for the best, but expected the worst.

"You're a princess, Zelda. I'm just a commoner. Colonel maybe, Hero of Time even, but I'm still of common blood, impure blood." Link lowered his head. "The truth of the matter is, we're different Zelda. We always will be. Maybe when we were kids, we were the same. But not anymore, and there is nothing that we can do about it." His voice rose just slightly at the end. "The reason why it seems like I don't care about you anymore, the reason why you think that you don't mean anything to me" He took a deep breath, Link could hardly believe what he was about to say "It is because I can't care. You simply can not mean anything to me."

"What?" Zelda sounded angry, her tears beginning to dry. "That's why you stopped being my friend?" Link could hear the betrayal in her voice. "Because you thought that you weren't good enough for me? You don't care about me because of our rank?" Zelda grew angrier and angrier with every word. All of her life she could never have real friends because she was constantly reminded that she was the princess, that she was too good to have a sleepover with one of her hand maid's daughters. That she was too special and important to go to a normal school. "You of all people should understand how I feel about that. Link, you should know that I don't care about rank."

"Zelda, that's not what I meant." Link tried to reach out to her and he did before, but she quickly shrugged away. "You may not care about whom we are Zelda, but everyone else does."

"Yes you did Link." He could hear the venom in her voice "That is exactly what you meant. You are too afraid of what other people think of you to take a risk. So fine, you don't care about me anymore, at least I have closure." She began to walk out of the Grand Hall through the door that she came.

"I swear." Link quickly followed her out, she practically ran down the hallway and he had to jog to keep up. The red carpeting in the hallway and foyer that they passed through did not have the best traction, so they both stumbled a bit. "I just meant that you and I naturally grew apart. It is not that I don't care about you. You mean everything to me" He struggled to take back everything he said, not that it was not true, he just hated himself for how he was hurting her. "We just can not be together, no matter how much we care for one another. Nothing can ever happen between us legally, you know that. I do love you Zelda; please you need to know that."

"Well that makes everything okay, because an 'I love you' fixes everything!" Zelda's voiced dripped with sarcasm. "Take me! I'm yours!" She shot him a look that was a mix between hatred and disgust. By the time she reached the steps she had descended the night before, she was sprinting.

Link had no trouble keeping up with her, his legs exploded with power as he chased after her. "Zelda, we can't be together, we can not even be friends, you're the Princess and I'm a solider, and that's that. You need to be with a prince or a lord, not a military man." It scared him that he used the same words to convince her of the situation that he used earlier to convince himself. "I'm sorry, Zelda, please, it just has to be this way."

She paused as she reached her door, and grasped the handle firmly, her knuckles turning white. "Just leave me alone. You're not the person that I thought you were. You may say that you love me. But you have shown me that I do not love you. How can I love some one who is too afraid of what everyone else thinks to be with me?" Zelda opened the door and stepped inside, but turned around to say one last thing.

"And that's you're Highness, to you Colonel."

**A/N: Zelda sure is emotional. I hate 17 year old girls and their drama, trust me I am one. It actually sort of confuses me how she got so angry**

**Anyways I hope that you liked this chapter. I know that it was short, but it is all about the flow of the story, so sorry. This one didn't have any of the jealous General action, but I promise the next one will so sorry non-Zelinkers. The next chapter will hopefully be up quicker. If you have any suggestions for the story, just let me know!**

**Review pretty please! Criticisms are welcome, but try not to flame! I know I have some grammar and tense mistakes, tell me if I have any plot holes or anything!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Sorry for the wait! I am changing the rating to M just because I want to be able to take this story into any direction that I want, and use language that I want. But don't be scared off, if I ever do smut, which will probably be rare if ever, I'll warn you.**

Enjoy!

"Make sure that Zelda knows that the Duke from Hisimum is coming tomorrow, she always forgets about these things" King Harkinian was in no mood to deal with Zelda's drabbles of teenage angst the following day. She was soon to be a women of age, and she needed to start acting like one.

Impa blinked as she registered the King's request in her mind, these early morning briefings never boded well for her. The Shekiah were not morning people. "Of course your Majesty" she replied without skipping a noticeable beat. "I will let her know immediately." With that, Impa turned on her heels and exited the throne room. As soon as she shut the door, the shekiah breathed a sigh of relief. It was her peoples sworn duty to serve and protect the royal family, yet she loathed the etiquette she must use around the King. With Zelda she could be much more informal.

Impa took her time walking from the north wing of the castle, where court and governmental meeting rooms were, to the west wing and Zelda's chambers.

This suitor would be the fourth that month, and every single one the princess turned her nose at. If she keeps this up, an arranged marriage will be her only option. At least right now they were giving her choices. The thought of Zelda being married made Impa ache, as well as feeling goddessly old. Ever since she was sixteen and Zelda was born, Impa had been her caretaker, protector as well as nursemaid.

All through Zelda's childhood, Impa always imagined that one day Link and she would get married. But even the last remaining member of the shadow tribe knew better at this point. The two had drifted apart, Link barely spoke to her anymore.

When she turned her next corner, Impa was grabbed by the arm and dragged into the closest room. All she heard was the slam of the door before she felt a set of lips assault hers.

Knowing who it was, Impa allowed her mouth to slowly move in sync with her partners briefly before pulling away and resting her forehead against theirs. "As much as I love these early morning encounters, I do have things to do Austin, and we may get caught."

"As do I," Colonel Austin O'Connor replied as he trailed wet open mouth kisses down her neck, nipping at her pulse point as he went. Austin was the third and final Colonel of the Hylian army, "But what's life without a little risk." Sliding his hands down to her waist, Austin pulled Impa flush against him and reclaimed her mouth.

Finally she gave in completely. Impa ran her tongue along his bottom lip, teasing and begging for entrance. He accepted enthusiastically and slowly swirled his tongue around hers battling for dominance. Eventually, Impa had to pull away completely but kept her eyes locked with Austin's. "I really do have to go, I have to talk to Zelda before she goes to court today. But I'll see you tonight. I love you." She rose up in her toes to give him one more passionate kiss goodbye.

"I love you too," Austin reciprocated. "See you tonight."

Impa squeezed his hand and left the room, continuing down the hall towards Zelda. She and Austin had what one could have called a "secret romance" but Zelda knew, as well as Link seeing as he was the closest thing that Austin had to a best friend, despite the eighteen year age gap between the two.

As she came upon one of the staircase leading to Zelda's room, there was one that come from the South wing where the Grand Hall and servants quarters were and one from the North wing, she heard a commotion coming from atop the stairs. Fearing for the princesses safety, she raced to the top of the stairs, but stopped before she could have been seen by the quarreling couple.

She did not hear the whole argument, but there was one thing that she did hear clearly, as well as the slam of a door.

"And that's your Highness, to you Colonel."

-  
General Rasche paced around the corner from the throne room doors waiting for Impa to leave so he could receive his briefing of the day from the King. He really should be the first one to meet with the king in the morning.

But noooooo Rasche thought Impa goes first because Impa is in charge of Zelda and Zelda is just so much more important than anything else.

How he despised that girl. Always taking the King's attention away from important matters like war and treaties. That whores suitors were apparently diplomatic issues that needed to be dealt with, bull shit. Whomever the princess decides to fuck for the rest of her life is no governmental concern. The man she marries may be the next King, but Rasche is going to make sure that that man has no real power.

Although he genuinely liked and respected King Harkanian for the most part no one could deny the fact that he was getting old.

The late Queen and he had produced Zelda at the age of forty. The Queen had bore other children, all male, all die within a month of birth due to, complications. When Zelda was born, the populace of Hyrule feared the same thing, as well as the Queen, who took her own life a week into Zelda's.

Even though the doctors had assured the Queen that Zelda was perfectly healthy, the distraught woman thought that Zelda was going to perish as well and she would not be able to bear it if she lost another child. A maid found her in her bathtub, wrists slit. That fact was completely hidden from public eye. Only the King, General Rasche, Impa, and the maid that found her knew, and they were all swore to secrecy. Not even Zelda knew the real reason her mother died. She, like everybody else believe that the Queen had contracted pneumonia from an open window, and died peacefully in her sleep.

The King, even after almost eighteen years, still can not quite handle the loss of his Queen. But his trauma made him an even better leader. He fearlessly lead troops into battle, and was always very diplomatic in his relations with other nations. King Harkanian's foreign policy was the best that Hyrule had ever had, and Rasche admired that.

What he did not admire though, was the Kings emphasis on the importance of his daughter. Who cares if she is some 'miracle child' she still is the little brat who set the stables on fire 'by accident' and is forcing the King to promote Link.

In all honestly, Zelda actually had nothing to do with Links rumored promotion. That was something he accomplished on his own, but that was something Rasche just could not, and would not, accept.

Rasche heard the opening and closing of the heavy oak doors as well as the pitter patter of Impa's quiet retreat. When he knew that he would not be in her line of sight anymore, he stepped around the corner and entered the throne room .

"Good morning General" King Harkanian's voice boomed through the stone inclosure as Rasche made his way to the base of the throne. "Mighty storm we had last night"

"Mighty indeed your Majesty," Rasche bowed as he reached the end of the carpet that runs from the door, across the room, and to the steps of the throne that the King was currently sitting on. "Good morning."

"I only have a few things to relay to you this morning, you have a batch of new recruits coming in this morning, correct General?" The King rested his elbows on his bent knees and intertwined his calloused hands as he spoke.

"That's correct." Rasche relaxed his position and clasped his hands behind his back. "Thirty five young men from Kakariko Village arrive in about an hour, those country boys are in for a rude awakening."

Karkariko was famous for their agriculture, all of the produce that came into castle town was from the east, and all of the dairy from Lon Lon Ranch in the west.

"I concur." The King shifted his head left and right, Rasche could hear the popping of his neck as he moved. "Although they are strong and fit, discipline and respect are definitely something that they lack."

"As well as something they better learn, and fast your Majesty, " The General enjoyed "fresh meat" as the experienced soldiers called them, but breaking in a rowdy group of farm hands was something he was in no mood for, he had lives to ruin. "As much as I loved to converse with you your Majesty, I do have to be on my way."

"Of course, of course." The King agreed. "Here I am taking up your time when you have things to do." He changed his demeanor from comfortable to professional as he spoke. "I just have one last thing to tell you."

"Yes your Majesty?"

"That trip to Alicard that Colonel Link has next week." The King looked straight into Rasche's eyes. "Go with him."****

A/N: Sorry about the lack of Zelink, but they'll be the stars of the next chapter. Did you guys like the whole Impa romance thing? Because I did! For like visual purposes, Link of more like Skyward Sword type images.

Thank you so much for reading! If it's not too much to ask, I would really appreciate a review! I don't have the next chapter completed yet, but hopefully it will be up soon!

Take care! Happy Holidays!


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